Seed Eco-Home Builder Crash Course
5 Step Owner-Builder Process
- Study. Study the Seed Eco-Home Building Book
- Rapid Learning Facility - Access to the Rapid Learning Facility for the ~100 required build modules. Includes scale models, realtime printing, and real-size builds, jigs, swarm tasks.
- Practice - Once you have all the technique, visit a real 5 day build on one of several build sites. Participate for 5 days in real builds in your local area.
- Get MaterialsYou purchase all the materials and tools from our exhaustive Distributed Bill of Materials.
- BYOL and Build! We send you a professionally designed Building Department Package for your local building department, including site plan and all necessary materials.
Build!
Rapid Learning Facility Modules
- Design Review - ability to take full CAD model and view it, extract dimensions, and generate cross sections for build details.
- Tool Use - Techniques for cordless drills, sliding saw, high amp circular saw, angle grinder, laser level, speed square, 4' bubble level, screwing things together, cutting housewrap. Cordless drill chuck replacement, sawblade replacement on circular and sliding saw, polisher use, sander, brad nailer operation, hammer stapler operation, masonry blade on a circular saw. Concrete grinder diamond wheel use. Grinder use. Multitool use.
- Foundation - grading using a bobcat, and backhoe for footer. Laser level and triangulation for corners. Ins and outs of form making, form assembly, rebar, rebar support, vapor barrier, and shallow insulated footer. Installing insulation, mudsill anchors, and accommodating rough-in plumbing.
- Painting- walnut and brown stain, white pain, exterior gloss for trim, and interior panels. Techniques for the correct coverage and workflow using an airless sprayer. Airless sprayer maintenance, operation, and teardown. Brushes and foam brush touchup. Paint mixtures with mineral spirits, diesel, and water. Paint formula for finish floor. Concrete sealer, densifier, self-leveling concrete floor options.
- Plumbing - understanding the design and building rough plumbing, and pressure testing for 5 psi for 15 minutes.
- Concrete Pour - ordering concrete, calculating concrete volume. Screeing, magnesium float, hand troweling, power troweling, watering, and protecting. Form removal. Form design.
- Concrete Polishing - using polishing buffers, going from 50-3000 grit for a shiny floor, including concrete densifier.
- Foundation to Wall Detail - waterproof, air proof details for junction from cement slab to walls. Includes insulation. Thorough understanding of sill plate detail and its design rationale.
- Walls - making pre-finished wall modules with included utilities and ability to assemble them and align them up to the top plate. Includes window and door modules, and preframed hidden doors for expansion. Window rain infiltration detail and base of door water infiltration detail. Understanding water infiltration detail using battens, self-adhering waterproof barrier, housewrap and flashing detail. Understanding of first principle wall bracing calculations.
- First Floor Ceiling - Installing joists for a second floor, with ceiling sheething
- 2nd Story Floor - sanded plywood, stained, varnished plank floor with acoustic underlayment. Bevel, stain + varnish, brad nail.
- 2nd Story Walls - building at height, these are procedures for using scaffolding and installing the second floor walls.
- Interior Walls - insulatd panels for interior walls, including doors.
- Bathroom - installing water heater, vent fan, shower, toilet, and sink
- Kitchen Cabinets - selecting and installing cabinets and furnishings for the kitchen
- Laundry - installing the laundry closet, washer, dryer, vent, and powering them from an appropriate outlet
- Electrical - preinstalling electrical in wall panels, finishing with externa applainces such as lights and fans, and installing the utility power meter and panel.
- Finish Plumbing - part of washer, dishwasher, bathroom, and kitchen connections. Testing with air for 50 PSI for 15 minutes.
- Stairway - installing stairway and landing.
- PV - installing an off-grid power system with transfer switch, not utility intertie but hybrid.
- Heat Pump - installing a split-air heat pump and connecting the necessary plumbing and electrical, prebuilding some of this into the wall modules. Hanging the heat pump on an exterior wall.
- Roof - installing an EPDM flat roof, gutter, and decorative band near roof.
- Driveway, grading. hardscaping - using geogrid with gravel for pervious pavement, graveling around house, proper grade for water, water drainage from gutter.
- Landscaping - planting trees, edible landscape, and ground cover. Seeding and mulching.
